The original sketch-up

Saw an old school desk at a yard sale a few weeks ago.  Stopped to take a look, but it was in lousy shape.  The chair didn't really match the desk.  The top was plywood and not solid.  I have been wanting to find a set of these desks for the kids' playroom, but this one just wasn't worth it.

When I got in the shop a few days later with nothing pressing, I started making a few sketches.  Perhaps I could build one in wood for less.  As you can see, I don't always go to the computer to design.  In this case a quick pencil sketch helped me get a clear picture of the desk I wanted to build.  Don't laugh, I wasn't planning on showing anyone this until I started to like how things were looking.

It seemed simple enough, so I started building a quickie prototype.  I had some plywood scraps that were perfect for the job. 

Taking the "rough sketch" idea even further, I experimented with an idea I read about a few months ago.  It was the idea that a carpenter can build without a tape measure. 

Wierd huh?

Basically, you know how big things ought to be, and what proportion those things should be in relation to each other just by looking at them.  Then, you just make cuts and such by copying other pieces.   So knowing how big a desk is by sight, I just cut a piece that looked like a desk.  I still don't know if it is 28" wide, or 26" wide, it just looks about right.  Then, I cut a piece narrower to represent the width of the box and so on.  When I was doing the box sides, I just set the tablesaw to the width I wanted, and knocked out equally sized parts.  It was really fun, really quick, and I will be playing with the idea more.

Here's the result:

 

It's really rough, the legs are just some ripped down 2x4 scraps.   I used them just to figure the angle and height I was looking for.  It does the job to see how it looks.  The exposed front of the opeing is raw plywood.  With all that though, I think I like it.  I've already started on a second prototype and I think I will follow it with a final version in clear maple, with a little chair.  Stay tuned, and be sure to leave a comment if you like it.